PICTON, ONT.'If buildings can be said to have distinctive characters, Claramount Inn & Spa has the poise and soft-spoken elegance of a well-groomed, older woman.

This 1903 colonial revival mansion overlooking Picton Harbour, is owned by Chris and Norah Rogers (he's a full-time veterinarian, she's a full-time family physician) who bought the property in 2001 and devoted the next three years to restoring it, using some 200 artisans to recapture its former glory. "We recreated the original windows," says Chris, by way of example. "A local glass worker took them apart and rebuilt them."

The house was built for and named after Clara Young, wife of Edward Young, a lawyer and county clerk. Although it has been a tourist home, an apartment building and base for the Prince Edward Cruising Club, the mansion now has seven luxurious suites, each with a distinct d??cor and furnished with antiques and original Canadian art. There are three more suites in the adjoining coach house.

After a two-hour train ride to Belleville from Toronto and another half-hour by car to reach Claramount, the oversize soaker tub sitting in front of a wide curtained window has its attractions. But there's no time for a long bath; there's a spa treatment in 15 minutes. There's just time for a little rest on the big four-poster bed. I climb up on the mattress (there's a little step stool for the purpose), prop myself up on four or five plump pillows and sink into the ultra-thick feather mattress. But soon I head for a body polish two floors down.

Claramount's spa services include a full range of treatments and draws on the Kneipp method, developed by mid-19th century Bavarian Sabastian Kneipp, which includes the healing use of water and botanicals. Some of the spa's aqua therapies take place in the inn's heated saltwater pool, which is open to guests.

A therapist mixes a concoction of organic pear and green apple with grains and seeds while I lie on a sort of rubber table that sits inside a shallow tub. She carefully rubs the mixture on one side of me then arranges a row of warm water jets above that rinse it away. Flip over and start again. The 45-minute body polish costs $85 and leaves me feeling delightfully damp and soporific but there's no time to sleep. Dinner awaits.

Michael Hoy was chef and director of the nearby Waring House Cookery School until three years ago when he took over Clara's, Claramount's fine dining restaurant. Hoy, along with other local chefs, continues to teach a class or two at the cooking school, which provides recreational hands-on cooking Saturday mornings and Tuesday evenings. On the second and fourth Wednesday of the winter months, Hoy runs a chef's long table at Clara's, which he builds around local ingredients. The five-course meal costs $39.

"I hang out with farmers. That's what drew me to the area," says Hoy, a native of St. Thomas, Ont.

The winter months in Prince Edward County have no shortage of other things to do.

"A weekend winter getaway is doable," says Rebecca LeHeup-Bucknell, executive director of Taste the County, which markets the area.

"You can come down and have some good food, take a cooking class, stroll around the little villages and visit the antique shops and the studios and galleries. Or you can relax and enjoy nature."

This quiet agricultural community 200 km east of Toronto has been making headlines the last few years due to the calibre of its food and wines. Some of the credit goes to name chefs, such as Toronto's Jamie Kennedy, who moved to the area and teamed up with local growers to showcase fresh produce, meats and dairy products.

In winter, restaurant menus offer such fare as eggs, bison and goose, artisan breads, Black River cheese, maple syrup, herbal teas and, of course, wine.

"It's about using what's at hand," says Norah Rogers, who with her husband also co-owns Waring House inn, which houses the Barley Room pub, a conference centre, cooking school and other businesses. In the Barley Room that evening, I meet Huff Estate's winemaker Frederic Picard, who came to Canada from France some five years ago. The winery has already won awards for its 2005 Gamay and Cabernet/Merlot, among others.

Prince Edward County's winemaking potential is huge, he says, noting the lime-based soil resembles that of Burgundy where he trained.

"I could have gone anywhere in the world to make wine," Picard says. "But here I'm part of building something ' and it's poised to explode." In the off-season, a number of vintners also provide tours of their wineries by appointment.

LeHeup-Bucknell marvels at the evolution of Prince Edward County in the last decade. As recently as 10 years ago, she says, not a single winery existed except for County Cider's hard cider. Now it has 15 wineries, with the province awarding the region Designated Viticultural Area status last year.

Picton, Wellington and Bloomfield also offer excellent "shopping therapy," as LeHeup-Bucknell puts it. You can amble through clothing stores, specialty food stores, galleries and studios featuring the works of more than 100 local painters, jewellers, sculptors and glassmakers, among others.

The off season also presents a softer-edged view of the rolling countryside and 800 kilometres of uncrowded coastline, giant sand dunes, beaches and trails.

"You can walk from Wellington all the way to Sandbanks along the shoreline," LeHeup-Bucknell says.

Just be sure to bring your parka.

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